On June 9, 2025, All Classical Radio presented a very special live broadcast of Nancy Ives’ Celilo Falls, performed by the Oregon Symphony under the direction of David Danzmayr. Hosted by All Classical Radio’s Brandi Parisi and Christa Wessel, and produced by veteran journalist Tess Vigeland and President & CEO Suzanne Nance, this historic broadcast took listeners live to the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in downtown Portland, OR.
Learn more about the project and broadcast.
Listen On Demand until June 24, 2025.
Celilo Falls is a multimedia musical experience composed in collaboration with Indigenous storyteller Ed Edmo and Native American photographer Joe Cantrell. Here you will find a stunning collection of images by Joe Cantrell to enhance your listening experience.
A salmon in the Columbia River Gorge. In their determination to get to their home pool and reproduce, the salmon hit their heads against the streamside boulders to flip their bodies over steps in the rapids.
One of the only depictions of a Kokopelli, a fertility deity, that Joe Cantrell has found in the Gorge. The image also shows a Shadow Bird, on the basalt panel to the left of the two figures over the broken terrain, or possibly water. The image is only visible when the light is a certain way.
The photographer’s canoe family, N’cheewanapum.
1999: Louise Billy, beloved matriarch and Yakama medicine woman with an eagle and a salmon.
PHOTOGRAPHER JOE CANTRELL
Cherokee photographer Joe Martin Cantrell uses his personal depth of perspective in combination with sophisticated techniques to make visible the things that often go unseen. After two tours as a Navy officer in Vietnam, Cantrell worked as a photojournalist for UPI, Black Star, Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and hundreds of other publications worldwide. He has taught at Oregon School of Arts and Crafts, Pacific Northwest College of Art, Mount Hood Community College, and was Artist in Residence at Crow’s Shadow Institute. Cantrell carries the name of an ancestor who died on the Trail of Tears and offers his own meaningful legacy through generous contributions to benefit humanitarian causes and the arts.
Cantrell was one of over 40 creatives of the Pacific Northwest profiles in All Classical Radio’s Artist Anthology. Learn more about Joe Cantrell and the Artist Anthology at anthology.allclassical.org.
Learn more about Celilo Falls and all involved in the historic broadcast. Listen live on June 9, 2025, at 7:15 PM PT at 89.9 FM in Portland or from anywhere in the world via the live player on our website.
